


Invader Train

by Psycheprincess



Category: Infinity Train (Cartoon), Invader Zim
Genre: Angst, Bad Parent Professor Membrane, But we'll get there, Everyone Has Issues, Gen, M/M, Membrane no that's horrible parenting, Some characters may take a while, Zib is... well it's technically Zib
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-08
Updated: 2020-09-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:02:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,446
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26362342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Psycheprincess/pseuds/Psycheprincess
Summary: Finding yourself on the Infinity Train is always odd, but it means you have issues. Issues that four teenagers and one alien really do need fixing.
Relationships: Dib/Keef (Invader Zim), Dib/Melvin, Dib/Torque Smackey, Dib/Zim (Invader Zim), Dib/Zim/Keef/Melvin/Torque Smackey (Invader Zim)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 19





	1. Prologue, The Cloud Car

A short but annoying jingle rang out from Dib’s alarm clock, the fifteen-year-old grumbling a little bit as he reached a hand out and turned it off. He searched for his glasses and put them on as he crawled out from under his blankets, opening his eyes from the squint. He rolled out of bed and went straight to the bathroom. Maybe this would be the day he defeated Zim? He could hope, at least. It was a school day, after all.

-

That morning didn’t go at all as planned. It had gotten off to a good start, with him leaving the house before Gaz could and walking all alone. However, a few blocks from the school he was tripped over by an outstretched leg, falling into a muddy puddle. That wouldn’t be a big deal if it wasn’t for Chunk and his crew to come out of seemingly nowhere. He couldn’t pay attention to what they were saying as he protected his neck as they started kicking him. Of course they’d beat him up… 

As they walked away he saw a kid he recognized as Melvin walking with them, grinning wide, though he looked vaguely worried. Dib stayed down until they were out of sight, beaten and bruised. Well… maybe things would be better in class. 

-

Class wasn’t much better. Dib was greeted by a new seating arrangement, where he sat in the front with Chunk right behind him, Zim to his left, and Keef of all people to his right. He could deal with it until he and Keef were assigned as partners in a project. The redhead started to talk about doing theirs on how rainbows formed— something they learned in elementary school! 

“We all know this already, Keef,” Dib said, causing Keef’s incessant grin to fade. “We could do this on something else, like how Mars ‘disappeared’ five years ago?” 

“But we never learned that!”

“It wouldn’t take much research, and we’d get a better grade!” 

“Alright…” Dib didn’t notice how deflated Keef seemed, but he did feel annoyed. Lunch would be better, he told himself. 

-

Dib had been able to catch one of the seats by Torque Smackey, one of few students who tolerated him, so he’d be safe from the lunchtime bullies. Poking at his goopy food, he rambled on and on about how clear it was that Zim’s an alien. It wasn’t until Torque got a call that he got up and left. Suddenly Dib was hit with mashed potato, causing him to get up and run off. Well… things would be better soon. He was going to go to Zim’s base to expose him as an evil alien monster once and for all!

-

He should’ve learned not to get his hopes up-- it never ended well, but he was just so sure this time around. He hadn’t expected Zim to snap at him to shut up, and that they couldn’t keep up with this same old ‘song and dance.’

“What do you mean?” Dib whispered, eyes wide, and secretly dreading what Zim was inevitably going to say. 

“It means Zim’s done taking over your pitiful planet! The Tallest told Zim everything!” He yelled, shaking as he slammed the door shut in Dib’s face, leaving the shorter boy sad and confused… Then the lawn gnomes grabbed him, shooting lasers as they dragged him and threw him to the sidewalk. After taking a minute to process this, Dib stood up and walked home.

-

Dib went straight to his room, checking the hidden camera in Zim’s base. He saw Zim looking distressed, like the world was crushing him, and he couldn’t lift a finger…

Dib felt the same way.

He quietly closed the app as he heard a notification. A new email… from dad! Dib opened it before he even looked at the subject line and… his heart sunk. An ultimatum. He could either join his dad in the labs next week, or he wouldn’t be allowed to research the paranormal again… ever. 

Dib started shaking as he read those words again. Forever? He couldn’t mean that-- he couldn’t! He had to do something. He had to escape! He had to-- had to--

His eyes darted to the window. Well… running away from home was an option. He had a week until he’d be noticed. He could probably get all the way across the country by then, especially if he used his allowance. Yeah-- he could at least get to California! He’d get to either Indiana or Ohio and then get on buses or trains or something until he got there. That’d work. He grabbed his briefcase, a bunch of allowance he had saved up, and changed into fresher clothes before climbing down from his window and running to a familiar woods.

When he got there he slowed to a mere stroll. The forest was familiar and calm, but he’d have to leave it, wouldn’t he? He wouldn’t be able to do what he loved here, after all. He didn’t have any sort of reason to stay, though he half regretted not using Tak’s ship, though he doubted it’d work anyway. It had broken down during the Florpus incident. He just wished there was an easier way to California--

Well, speak of the devil.

An old train, likely built in the 20th century, arrived in front of him. A screen on it said California. Jackpot! The normally skeptical teenager, too eager to leave now, got into the train and… 

-

When he awoke, he was in a pod, with a screen with an orb-shaped robot talking on it. He barely understood what it was talking about, but he heard one thing. A number? He looked at his hand, surprised to see a number-- 346-- glowing a bright green on his palm. Issues too? Odd… he looked around to see he was nestled in a cloud, surrounded by sky and clouds. Well, that was new… He got up, stretched, and looked around, seeing a door. The handle was odd, but intuitive. He turned the handle with both hands, opening it up and seeing that he was on the train, going through a wasteland at high speed. Well… alright then. 

He walked across the bridge connecting two cars, his coat and cowlick fluttering in the air behind him. Well… what could go wrong? He opened the next door.


	2. Chapter 1, The Fey Car

Dib found himself entering into a flowering forest with a small amount of snow and frost covering the leaves and tracing the flowers. There was a breeze, blowing cherry blossom petals along. It was nice, even if it wasn’t Dib’s idea of an ideal spring situation. He looked up and saw the sun was low in the sky, just barely dawn, though nothing changed when he watched the sky. Concluding that it was stuck there, he stepped onto a cobblestone path, grass and dandelions peeking through the cracks. It was like Early Spring was captured to the prettiest it could be.

As he walked through the woods, he saw pastel little fireflies-- or at least, what people would normally assume were fireflies. Dib paid attention to the smell of cinnamon. The sound of bells on the wind. The sparkles that lay on the ground. Those were telltale signs of fairies. He was careful not to move off the path, seeing small circles of mushrooms here and there.

Then he heard it. The all-too-familiar screaming of someone who didn’t want to ever admit it but had absolutely no idea what was going on.

The sound of Zim.

With a heavy sigh, Dib dodged some fairies and made sure not to interrupt anything, seeing a pod much alike the one he arrived in, and Zim, in full disguise, demanding answers from a now black screen.

“Hey, Spaceboy, that’s not live yknow! And it’s not on!” Dib called out, watching Zim turn to look at him and scowling.

“Of course you’re here, Di--”

“Don’t reveal my name to the fairies, alright?”

Zim scowled at Dib’s reasonable request, clearly miffed.

“Fine, why’s Zi--”

“Don’t reveal your name either!”

Zim groaned in disbelief.

“What CAN I do then?!”

“Nicknames I guess?”

“Fine then, Stinkbeast. Why can’t I use your name?”

“‘Cause fairies steal names. I’ll explain more later--”

Dib was cut off by a larger fairy tugging on his cowlick. He turned to look at it, the taller alien squinting with one eye as though he were raising an eyebrow. The fairy was as big as his index finger with purple skin, black curly hair, and long wings made of flower petals. It was an interesting look at least.

“What is it?”

“I was right, you are a passenger! Call me Flit, ‘cause I flitter here and there-- oh I’m almost everywhere!” The fairy exclaimed, flying around, causing Dib to get dizzy. Zim stepped in. 

“Get to the point, fey-beast.” He earned a sharp nudge from Dib when he said that.

“Well first, may I have your names?”

“No, you can’t. You can call us Mothman and… Spaceboy.”

“Aw poo, a smartypants!” Dib smiled a little as Flit said that. He was smart, and he felt like people should recognize that more. “Anywaaay, mom and dad are the rulers of the two fey kingdoms, Seelie and Unseelie! But they’ve been at odds lately… there’s the border, see?”

The border was lined with wildflowers and the sky turning a deep blue with a golden harvest moon low in the sky, casting the other forest in a twilight. The leaves were various colors-- some red, some green, and others yellow or orange. Fruits of all sort were fresh and ready, and squirrels with golden glows were all around.

“It’s a pretty border,” Dib said, to which Flit sighed.

“It’s my favorite part of the forest, but the sun and moon should be eclipsed… it’s all ‘cause they don’t think the other’s forest is pretty. How silly is that!” Dib paused-- that was quite egotistical, and a bit foolish, but… “So now they aren’t letting anyone cross the border, even if they’re a passenger!”

“Feh! As if they can stop me, the powerful, amazing, brilliant Zi--” Flit reached her hand out as if to grab something before Zim stopped himself. “Er… as if they can stop me, for I am powerful, amazing, and brilliant.” 

Zim approached the border, but couldn’t move past an invisible barrier. “Sorry, sir. The emperor won’t let anyone into his kingdom.” A small fairy said.   
  


“Oh, what dookie!” Zim exclaimed, storming back to Dib and Flit. “Take us to your maternal unit, filthy-fairy.”

“Right this way, then!”

Dib and Zim followed Flit as Dib explained what he had figured out from before. For now, Zim didn’t look underneath his gloves. He didn’t want to see his number, knowing that it’d be high. He didn’t know just how high exactly, but certainly higher than Dib’s number. 

The throne room was a clearing full of clovers and flowers, with a fairy circle surrounding the throne, which was covered in frost and flowers. The empress was much taller than any of the other fairies, with a white glow and hair in a tight bun. Her wings were covered in frost, and her robes faded to nothing at the bottom. Flit and Dib bowed, though Zim saluted before getting nudged, which clued him in on the bowing. Zim did feel… uncomfortable by this lady. She reminded him of… someone familiar.

“My, two passengers? How lovely… welcome to the Seelie kingdom. You may call me Empress Frost. What brings you to my throne?”

“Well… we need to go to the next car, but the emperor won’t let us through.”   
  


“I see… I cannot help you there, I’m sorry.”

“But you have to, mom! Isn’t it the denizens’ job to help passengers through their trials? This is one more trial!” Flit protested.

“... I can discuss with him, but don’t get your hopes up.” The empress stood up, two fairy guards joining her. “Go tell your father I’ll be coming to the border. You two passengers, come with me.”

They went back to the border, trailing behind Empress Frost. When they reached the border they saw the emperor, a man slightly shorter than the empress. He wore the same robes she did but black. His eyes were big and beady and his wings were made of autumn leaves with green leaves below. Zim stiffened at the sight.

“Call me Emperor Leaf. Now, what do you and those passengers want?”

“Well… we need to go to the next car,” Dib said. Leaf scoffed.

“Not until she concedes that my kingdom’s nicer than hers!”

“Your kingdom? Nicer? Don’t make me laugh! Your subjects wouldn’t know beauty if it bit them in the neck!”

“Well, yours wouldn’t know beauty if it beat them upside the head with a bat!”

The argument went on and on until Flit yelled “Enough! Both of your kingdoms are lovely!”

Frost and Leaf paused as they looked to their child in surprise.

“I can tell that Mothman and Spaceboy feel the same way, too.”

Dib cleared his throat.

“I mean… personally, I like how Leaf’s kingdom is more, but that’s my own opinion. It’s built around the Early Autumn, which is a really cool time of the year, but Frost’s is nice too.   
  
“Z-- I like Frost’s kingdom more as well. It’s regal, with how the forest’s like, which is very much my style. Leaf’s kingdom is equal, though.”   
  
Both monarchs paused, then started to laugh. 

“Oh Flit… when you’re right, you’re right!” Frost exclaimed.

“I never thought yours was inferior, I was just jealous of how regal your kingdom was.”

“I was jealous of how your kingdom could just let loose.”

The moon and sun rose and overlapped, creating a solar eclipse. They turned to look at them.    
  
“Thank--”   
  
Zim grabbed Dib roughly by the wrist, quickly pulling him through the Unseelie kingdom. 

“Can’t talk, gotta go, bye!” Zim yelled, “Can’t stand this car any longer!”

They quickly located the door, Zim bursting through, pulling Dib through, then shutting it with a loud sigh of relief. The alien slumped to the floor.

“Those weren’t them.” He mumbled, finally lifting his arm. He pulled his glove off to reveal that his arm was just glowing. He couldn’t see the difference between skin and numbers.

“Jeez…” Dib murmured, checking his number. It was the same as before. “Yours is much higher than mine.”


	3. Chapter 2, The Festival Car

“What, you can see them?” Zim squinted, looking closely at the glow on his forearm. Dib shook his head, showing off his hand as he approached.    
  
“No, I just don’t have nearly the same amount-- only my palm’s glowing, I mean.” He explained, sitting next to the alien. There was a long and kind of awkward silence between them, which Dib broke.   
  


“Do you, uh… wanna talk about why--”

  
  
“NOPE!”

“Alright then!” Dib got up and offered a hand to help Zim up. He scowled and slapped it away, getting up all on his own.

“Zim needs no help from a big-headed fool-boy such as yourself, got that?” Dib rolled his eyes and nodded in response, rubbing his poor hand where Zim slapped it. He grabbed his briefcase, swung it over his shoulder. 

The two crossed the bridge, Zim leading the way with his usual military-like bounce. Dib tried to speed walk ahead, but the alien pushed him back with a Pak leg. Grumbling a little, he resigned himself to just follow along for now. Upon reaching the next car Zim opened the door… and groaned. Dib pushed past him to look at it and gasped.

Inside the car there were plenty of beings-- chickens that blew harmless fire with each breath, a dog with a human face, and even some animated prayer beads. These were all creatures Dib could easily name. They were all different beings from Japanese legends! And looking around, it seemed they’d stumbled into a Japanese summer festival. The sky sparkled with countless stars, and lanterns lit the numerous stalls. It was breathtaking.

A small dog creature-- an inugami, to be exact-- tugged at the end of Dib’s pants. He crouched down, and the dog gave him two exorcism scrolls.

“They’ll protect you and your friend when the Hyakki Yagyo comes through,” it explained, wagging its tail. Dib gave it a quick head pat.

“Thank you, that’s very kind.” He then handed one of the scrolls to Zim, putting his around his arm. “Wear it like this, alright?” Zim rolled his eyes and did so. 

The two walked through the festival, stopping by a treat stall run by a Yuki-onna. She gave Zim taiyaki and Dib cherry-flavored shaved ice, which Dib thanked her for. Zim didn’t hesitate to eat his, but Dib took his time… and then they saw a very recognizable mop of curly orange hair, though the nervousness in his expression was new. 

It was undeniably Keef, who had been their personal terror in fifth grade.

The two turned to leave, but it was too late. They’d been spotted.

“Dib! Zim!” They were tackled in a rib-crushing hug, unable to easily escape. “It’s so good to see you guys! Where are we?”

“Urgh-- long story--” Dib wheezed out, relieved when Keef let go, but he was confused by the redhead’s subsequent cry of despair upon seeing his palm. 

“It went up…” He mumbled, then sighed and grinned again. He seemed like sparkles were radiating off of him. “Oh well. I was so scared when I saw that you two didn’t show up to school today! Gaz didn’t know what happened, and Gir burst into tears! I had to find you so I went searching for you. I’m so glad you’re okay!”

“Right-- wait, today? We must’ve been asleep for a while…” Dib remarked. “Have you met anyone here yet?”

“Oh, yep! There’s this nice skeleton lady! She helped me after I woke up on that mountain over there! Also she put this thing on me?” Keef raised his arm up and tilted his head. “Why’d she do that?”

“There’s a parade that’s apparently dangerous and these apparently protect us.” Zim didn’t do a good job explaining, but it worked so Dib shrugged it off.

As they spoke, though, a fox with numerous tails that Dib recognized as a Kitsune pulled them to the side of the street. “You have your scrolls, correct?” It asked. The three raised their arms to show them and the kitsune scampered off. Down the street a procession started, led by a yokai with a long forehead. A few joined, and others broke off. Dib’s eyes sparkled as they watched.

Soon, though, a hopping zombie-like creature-- a Kyonshi-- who broke off approached the small group. 

“Have you been enjoying yourselves?” He asked, being met with nods of affirmation.

“This place is so cool! I’ve never seen so many paranormal creatures in one place before! Hey, can I ask you some questions?”

“Hum… I don’t see why I shouldn’t, especially for a human as passionate and nice as you,”

Keef pulled on Zim’s sleeve, backing away a little. They stood a bit away.

“Doesn’t spooky stuff make Dib sad?’

“Why would it? His room is covered in it, so why would the fool want to have a room of something he dislikes.”

Keef looked down a little. That thought had never occurred to him. He’d only ever seen Dib sad or angry after accusing Zim of being an alien. This was… different.

He looked up when he heard Dib laugh. It was a stuttery, wheezy noise, but… Keef found it oddly cute. His cheeks turned red as Zim squinted with one eye.

“Ah, Zim sees. You have those filthy ‘feeeel-ings’ for the Dib-fool”

“Well… I thought you did too?”

Zim scowled. “Urgh, you’re such a liar.”

They stood in silence as Dib and the Kyonshi exchanged farewells, and Dib rejoined the two of them. “That Kyonshi acted pretty weird-- he asked if I was doing anything after this? I mean I thought it’d be clear that I was gonna go to the next car…” Zim scowled and grabbed Dib’s wrist roughly.

“Yes, that’s exactly what--”

“Wait a minute please?” A lady with a cow face asked. “I can see the future, and I can tell that Dib will be needing this at some point.”

The lady pushed a compact mirror into Dib’s hands. 

“With that you should get going. Something’s waiting for you. The other door’s by the firework setup.”

The lady then left, and Dib looked at the mirror. Hm.

“Now, let’s leave,” Zim said, pulling Dib along. Keef followed as they went there, and they went through the door one by one.


End file.
